Thursday, April 07, 2011

Kentucky Derby 2011 looks to be full of speedy types, we've already covered one of those, The Factor. But of all the hopefuls we've seen run so far this year, the only one that has shown the explosive sit and kick style that can be so successful come derby day, is Premier Pegasus. A son of 2000 Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus and out of a mare by classic winner and derby sire Summer Squall, this colt can certainly get the distance. He was precocious as a two year old, winning the Hollywood Prevue and ran well in defeat going seven furlongs in the San Vicente.

But it wasn't until the blinks came off and this colt went two turns in the San Felipe, that we saw what he's really made of. Sitting 8 or 10 lengths off the pace and then exploding around the turn, drawing off from the competition, including a comebacking Jaycito.

At first, I was a bit concerned about how hard the jock rode him to the wire, hitting him several times with the whip and pushing him all the way home, when the race was sewed up. But on hindsight, that is what these derby horses need. They need to be pushed beyond their comfort levels. It can only serve this colt well in the coming weeks, he'll need it to wear the roses in may.